Muggles, Hogwarts, etc. all belong to JKR, not me. If they did belong to me I'd be famous right now, with a million dollars, but they don't belong to me, so I'm not rich or famous… yet.

My mother was a muggle. My father was a wizard. My mother has always known that my dad was a wizard, though; her little sister was a witch. She'd known about wizards since she was a little girl, though I don't think she planned on marrying one. My sister, Anna and I grew up in the wizarding world.

My mother sort of pretended she was a squib, all of her friends were witches and my sister and I went to an elementary school for the children of wizards and witches. You wouldn't necessarily develop magical abilities once you graduated, and we didn't learn any magic there, it was simply a way to keep the wizarding children separate from muggles. It made sense too, I mean, imagine a wizarding child inviting a muggle friend home, after school. How do you think the muggle might react when his friend's mom pointed an old stick at the dirty dishes and they began washing themselves?

Anyway, we'd been raised as witches, so I was excited, but not surprised when, at the end of elementary school, I received an official looking letter by owl post. However, I was surprised when I'd opened the letter and found it was an invitation to Hogwarts, the most famous wizarding school in the world. I'd heard a while back that the school had begun to accept students from other countries, but I'd never guessed that I might get in.

I was, I'll admit, considered a "smart kid" in my class, but you could get all A's and still end up going to a public school of magic. I'd always hoped to go to the Susan B. Anthony School for young witches and wizards. Most people have no idea that the famous women's suffragist was really a witch. Anyway, the Susan B. Anthony was a prominent boarding school in Boston. It was close enough that I could come home on the weekends and I'd still be able to see all of my old friends. Hogwarts, on the other hand, was quite a different matter.

My Grandpa Colbee had gone to Hogwarts, so I guess that counted for something, but he'd lived in England his whole life. I was American. That made all the difference in the world. Because of that, I felt I had the right to be proud. I'd earned my acceptance into the finest school in the world.

My parents were both at work, so I lazed around the house, bragging to my sister until they got home.

"Mom!" I cried as she opened the door, "Mom, look!" I waved the thick orange-ish envelope in her face. I was careful to hold it at just the right angle so that the light caught the shiny emerald green ink. My mother gasped and dropped all her bags on the floor.

"Oh Sarah! Is it an acceptance letter? What school, honey? What school? Did you get Susan B. Anthony!" She was almost more excited than me.

"Nope! Even better!" I exclaimed, still waving the envelope, but not quite ready to hand it over yet.

"Better? What's better? I thought you wanted to go to the Susan B. Anthony." She was confused now, again she reached for the envelope, but I pulled it away.

I smiled and took out the letter. "Dear Miss Starrel, We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted Hogwarts School of Witchcaft and Wizardry!" I read.

My mother looked confused, instead of happy. "But, isn't that…" she began.

"Yes mom! It's in England! Apparently they've gone international, but it's supposed to be the best school in the world! And I doubt they've accepted that many Americans. This is the chance of a lifetime! It's incredible!" I put as much enthusiasm on the words as possible. I was trying to erase her frown.

"I always thought you had your heart set on…"

"Yes mom." I rolled my eyes, "But that's because I never even imagined that I could go to Hogwarts!"

"Well the Susan B. Anthony School, isn't that an awfully good school too?"

"Yes mom, but Hogwarts is on a completely different level! Tell them you went to Hogwarts and all the best American colleges will come running!"

"I suppose…" she said nervously.

"Well, what's wrong with it mom? Aren't you happy? This is the best school in the world we're talking about!"

"I know…" she said, "I'm so proud of you, it's just that, well, you'll be gone almost all the time. We'll never see you. Just, think about it. You may still be accepted to other schools. Wait and see. This is a choice that will affect the rest of your life."

"That's exactly it! I've been accepted at Hogwarts! If I go there it will affect the rest of my life! In a good way!"

"I'm not saying no, I'm just saying, wait before you make a decision. Take some time to think."

"Alright…" I sighed sulkily. I would never admit it, but what my mom had said was making me have second thoughts. It was true. If I went to England, I really would barely ever see my family. Still… This was Hogwarts.

My father's reaction was much more preferable. He, being a wizard, with a father who went to Hogwarts was very proud and excited. Once my mother had spoken with him, his enthusiasm deflated slightly, but he was still eager for me to go. He knew and understood what an opportunity this was.

As the days rolled by, I got three more acceptance letters. One was from the Susan B. Anthony. The others were both to schools I really had no interest in. On the last day before we left for our vacation to Disney World, I once again confronted my mother abut Hogwarts.

"Really, Mom, I've made up my mind. I've had plenty of time to think and I-"

"Look, I think you should wait a little longer. At least until we get back from Florida, ok?"

I nodded, but I really didn't want to wait. The problem was, I was afraid that I might actually change my mind if I thought any longer. I had to go to Hogwarts, I knew I had to, but I thought about how homesick I had been just at summer camp, and I started to wonder if maybe this wasn't a good idea after all…